World meat industry news

Kazakhstan expects to achieve self-sufficiency in broiler meat by nearly doubling domestic production by 2027, Ruslan Sharipov, head of the Kazakh union of poultry farmers told the local newspaper, Kapital.

In 2021, poultry meat production in Kazakhstan totalled 283,000 tonnes, Sharipov said, adding that this figure has grown steadily over recent years, jumping 57% compared to 2017.

Domestic consumption stood at 427,000 tonnes in 2021, with 64% of domestic demand being met by Kazakh poultry farms. The rest comes from Russia, Belarus, and the US, Sharipov said. In 2027, Kazakhstan is likely to reach a production level of 600,000 tonnes of broiler meat, thus becoming a net exporter, he added.

Poultry consumption increase

On the other hand, despite production growth, import dynamics remained flat over the past few years. In 2021, Kazakhstan imported 168,000 tonnes of poultry meat compared to 172,000 in 2017. Over the past 5 years, poultry consumption per capita rose from 18.8 kg to 21.1 kg.

An eye on exporting poultry to China

“Together with the production growth, we intend to boost poultry exports from Kazakhstan. China looks like the most promising market, though at the moment, it remains closed for the Kazakh poultry farmers,” Sharipov said.

Expansion of China-Kazakhstan trade is on the agenda. Last year, the trade turnover between the countries reached US$1.5 billion and is projected to keep growing, according to Sharipov.

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Export has been steadily growing since 2018 when it was estimated at 8,700 tonnes. In 2021, it reached 24,000 tonnes. Kazakhstan poultry farmers export broiler meat primarily to the neighboring Central Asian countries of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan.

Egg farms to benefit too

Maxim Bozhko, head of the Kazakh association of egg producers, agreed that lifting the Chinese ban on poultry imports from the country would be beneficial for the poultry business.

“There is an old ban [on poultry meat exports] in place since the 2000s, associated with a bird flu outbreak in China. Kazakhstan prohibited poultry exports from China, and our neighbours responded with the same measure, which remains in force,” Bozhko said.

“At the same time, Russia and Belarus freely export their poultry products in this direction. The authorities of the 2 countries [Kazakhstan and China] need to negotiate and make a political decision to lift the ban and open access for our poultry products to the huge Chinese market. This will give a powerful impetus to the development of the industry,” Bozhko added.